


Thick as Thieves

by bukcybarnes



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Domestic, Asexual Natasha Romanoff, Best Friends, Bucky and Steve do cute best friend stuff, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, In which I completely ignore ALL canon, M/M, Multi, Spooning, Starbucks, Stucky - Freeform, steve falls off of a treadmill thinking about the booty, tw food
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-18
Updated: 2015-06-30
Packaged: 2018-04-05 00:44:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4159164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukcybarnes/pseuds/bukcybarnes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AKA: Steve and Bucky Don't Know When They Stopped Being Best Friends and Started Being Lovers. The line between best friends and lovers is really blurry and unnecessary. Lots of shenanigans and awesome domestic stuff. And I ignore all of the canon.<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Bucky Moves Out

**Author's Note:**

> Peggy sighed and replied, “He loves you.”  
> Bucky’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? How do you know?”  
> “I just do,” Peggy said with a tone of finality.

Bucky pulled his leather jacket over his ears to shield them from the harsh wind. He was sure that it was messing up the perfect brown wave that he had gelled his short hair into. Windy days fucking sucked, especially in New York. He was on his way home from work early; Bucky worked as a music tech at the Rogue Music store on West 30th. Bucky lived not too far away on 22nd street with his boyfriend, Drew. Bucky walked up the stairs to his apartment and turned the doorknob, which was weirdly unlocked.  
“Drew?” Bucky called out into the dark apartment. He rubbed his hands together to try to coax the warmth back into them as he set his keys down in the little glass dish he kept by the door. “Drew? Are you home?” Bucky sighed and took his jacket off. As he went to hang it up, he heard a crash coming from their bedroom. Bucky froze and looked around for a possible weapon. He had no idea what to do if a burglar was in his house. Bucky picked up the long black umbrella leaning against their ratty brown couch. Holding it like a baseball bat, he silently walked to their bedroom door. He looked through the crack and saw nothing, so he cautiously inched his way closer to the doorknob. Bucky flung the door open, umbrella at the ready. What he saw was even worse than a big scary person stealing his TV.

Drew was in the middle of having sex with another man.

 

Bucky picked up his leather jacket and keys and stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him. He hoped Drew didn’t follow him because if he did, Bucky didn’t trust himself not to yell at him. Or cry. Or both.

“Baby, wait up!” Drew cried, running behind Bucky with his shirt unbuttoned and belt undone. Bucky froze and turned on a dime to face him. They were standing on the sidewalk below their apartment now. All of their neighbors were probably staring.

“What? What could you possibly have to say right now that will fix what I just saw?”

Drew opened his mouth to speak but then closed it before opening it again to suggest a half-assed “I’m…sorry?”

Bucky threw his head back and actually laughed. “Wow. That’s literally the most pathetic excuse for an explanation that I have ever heard in my entire life. Goodbye, Drew.” Bucky started to walk away before Drew grabbed his arm. Bucky glared at him and threatened, “Don’t touch me. I’ll come by and get my stuff tomorrow at twelve. Don’t you dare be there.” With that, Bucky left Drew disoriented and open-mouthed behind him. Bucky made sure he was at least two blocks away before he let the tears roll down his cheeks.

 

Bucky ended up walking two miles, all of the way to Central Park. It was still windy and he was still cold, but Bucky didn’t even care anymore. He found a bench that wasn’t taken behind some trees and bushes a little deeper into the park. Bucky sniffled and wiped his wet cheeks with the back of his coat sleeve. Not only did he no longer have a boyfriend, but he didn’t have anywhere to stay.

Bucky pulled out his cellphone and tried to compose himself. He opened his contacts and flipped through, debating on who to call to come get him. Clint Barton was one of the first names in his contacts. Bucky knew Clint because sometimes he babysat Clint’s kids. Bucky wasn’t going to call him. Next came up his parents’ names. He knew they’d just worry, so he didn’t call them. Right after his mother, there was Natasha Romanoff. Natasha was one of his best friends. She would probably fuss over him, but he knew she would come get his sorry ass out of Central Park during rush hour traffic. She was loyal like that.

Bucky hesitated before tapping his index finger to the ‘call’ button beside Natasha’s name. He felt bad, but he didn’t have anywhere else to turn.

The phone rang two and a half times before Natasha picked up. “Hey, Buck! What’s up?” A chipper voice asked on the other line.

Bucky tried to clear his throat and replied, “Uh, nothing. I, uh, well, I need you to come get me.”

“What? You sound weird, are you okay? Where are you?” This time, Natasha’s voice was concerned and serious. She sounded like Bucky’s mother.

“I’m in Central Park. I can meet you by the street. I think I’m by West 67th.” Bucky felt bad asking other people for favors, and now was no exception. “You don’t have to come get me,” he amended. “I’ll be okay.”

“Bullshit.” Natasha objected. “You are not okay. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Don’t move a muscle,” Natasha instructed. “And don’t run away either. I’m coming to get you. Be on the sidewalk by 67th in fifteen minutes.”

Bucky almost smiled at how well she knew him. “Okay,” he agreed. “Thank you so much.”

"Don't sweat it,” Natasha replied. His phone beeped to announce that the call had ended. Bucky did smile this time. That was as close to a 'you’re welcome' as Bucky had ever gotten from her.

Fourteen minutes later, Natasha showed up in her black Honda Civic. Bucky checked to make sure the street was clear before leaving the sidewalk to hurry over to where she was parked. Bucky shut the door and Natasha carefully pulled her car back on to the street. They sat in comfortable silence for a few blocks before Natasha broke it by asking, “What happened? And don’t BS me either.”

Bucky sighed and thought about how to answer. He had just caught his boyfriend of one year cheating on him. A year is a long time. Bucky didn’t even know how it came to this. Maybe it was always like this.

“Hey,” Natasha snapped him out of his trance. Bucky realized he had been staring out of the window for a while now. They were almost at Nat’s apartment.

“Well,” Bucky began. “Drew and I are over.”

Natasha’s eyebrows furrowed together. “What do you mean? What did he do?”

“He, uh, I caught him in bed with someone else," Bucky said, staring down into his lap.

Natasha’s mouth fell open at that. “I knew he was a dirtbag, but this is a new low, even for him.”

Bucky felt his throat tightening up again. “Yeah, it is. Could we maybe talk about this later?”  
Natasha took her eyes off of the road briefly to study his face. “Of course,” she replied. “You know, Peggy is home. She can cook us some of her awesome little meat pies.”

Peggy Carter was from Essendon, a little town outside of London. She came to live in New York on a whim and ended up liking it enough to stay. Along with Peggy, Natasha also lived with a woman named Maria Hill. Maria was from Chicago, but she moved to New York for work. Bucky thought it was cool that such strong scary women lived together.

 

When Natasha opened the door to her apartment, she and Bucky were greeted by Peggy and Maria arguing over what to watch on Netflix.  
“No, no, we absolutely must watch Orange is the New Black,” Peggy demanded.

“Guys,” Natasha interjected.

Maria threw a pillow at Peggy, messing up her bright red curls, and countered, “No, we’re watching Friends.”

“GUYS!” Natasha raised her voice this time, gaining the attention of the two disagreeing women. “Bucky is going to stay with us for a while.” She gave her two friends a loaded glare that said 'Don’t dare ask why.'

“Sweet,” Maria said. “Bucky, would you rather watch Friends or Orange is the New Black?”

“No fair!” Peggy cried.

Bucky said, “I don’t have a preference, I guess.”

“Stop bullying him,” Natasha ordered. “I’m going to go find him something to wear. Hey, Maria, can he have those clothes that, uh, what’s his name, Ben left here when you dumped him?”

“Sure!” Maria agreed. “As soon as he sides with me on watching Friends.”

Natasha rolled her eyes and led him into their bedroom. Bucky sat on one of their two sets of bunk beds and waited as Natasha searched through the closet. She emerged, minutes later, with a Yankees t-shirt and some sweatpants, saying, “You two were about the same size. Maria dumped him months ago but he left some clothes here so I washed them and hung them up. They’re finally coming in handy.”

“Thanks,” Bucky said sheepishly as he took the clothes from her. “I really appreciate what you’re doing.”

Natasha waved his thanks off with her hand and replied, “Seriously, don’t worry. You’d do it for me. Now, what do we have to do to get you back on track?”  
“Well, I have to go back there and pick up my things from his apartment. And ultimately, I need to find somewhere to live...” Bucky trailed off.

Natasha nodded and said, “We can do that. Hey, Peggy,” she called, walking out of the bedroom. “Didn’t you have a friend who was looking for a roommate? The cute one, oh, what was his name, Stanley?”

Peggy laughed and replied, “You are terrible with names. His name is Steve and yes, he needs a roommate. He’s working tomorrow at Café 27. We could go eat breakfast there and have Bucky meet him. I think they’ll get along well.”

“Awesome. We’ll do that,” Nat confirmed. “Now, how about some of your lovely cooking for dinner?”

Bucky ate dinner with his friends and felt almost okay. Peggy really was a great cook. He was still upset about Drew, but he knew that life would go on without him. The hard part would be finding a new roommate. Natasha made up their big comfy couch for him and assured him that he could stay as long as he needed to. Bucky hoped it wouldn’t be that long. He couldn’t help but feel like he was putting her out.

 

Bucky awoke to chattering voices around 8:30. He was confused as to where he was until he recognized Nat’s voice. All of what happened yesterday came flooding back into his brain. Bucky groaned loudly. This alerted the talking women that he was awake and Natasha immediately ran over to him.

“Hey,” she jeered. “Look who’s alive.” This earned laughter from Peggy and Maria, who were still stationed in their small kitchen. Bucky blinked and rubbed his eyes. His friends were dressed already. He turned his head to the left to see his clothes from yesterday, clean and folded on the coffee table by his head. He mentally noted that he was forever in Natasha’s debt and rolled off of the couch.

“Get dressed,” Natasha instructed, tilting her chin toward Bucky’s folded clothes. “We’re going to go meet your new roommate.”

“But he hasn’t even met me yet. What if he hates me?” Bucky whined.

Natasha gave him a sympathetic look and replied, “He won’t.”

 

The four friends piled into Nat’s Honda. Maria called shotgun and was sitting smugly in the passenger seat. Bucky and Peggy shared the backseat, knees almost touching. Maria was telling Natasha about a cute new intern at her office, Natasha was studiously listening, and Peggy was playing a puzzle game on her phone. Bucky sat in anxious silence. He was thinking about everything that had happened yesterday and everything that was going to happen now as a result. He had thought he loved Drew, but after he caught him cheating, Bucky realized that he really didn’t need him. Especially not if Drew was just going to hurt him.

“-and he wears this really sharp blue pea coat. It’s really slimming. You know, he brought me coffee the other day. Maybe I should ask him out.” Bucky caught the tail end of what Maria was saying.

“You should totally ask him out. Hot people don’t just bring other hot people coffee to be nice,” Bucky suggested.

“You know what, thanks, Bucky, I will,” Maria said confidently.

“Anytime,” Bucky smiled as he looked out the window. He saw a coffee shop to their right. “Hey, is this the place?”

“Yep,” Nat replied. “There should be parking on the other alley.” Once Natasha parked her car, the group got out.

“How cute!” Maria exclaimed as they walked toward the building.

“Yes,” Peggy agreed. “This is a quaint little café. After you,” she said as she held the door open for her friends. Bucky thanked her as he walked through. The inside of the café was small and cozy. There were little square tables each with four metal chairs covering the checkered floor. A few couples sat in some of them. On the left wall was a fully-stocked fridge with juice and soda and Bucky’s favorite- bottled Starbucks iced coffee. The four friends walked up to the counter to place their orders. Behind the cash register was a tall, muscular blonde man in a too-tight white t-shirt and a green apron. His nametag read ‘Steve’ in perfect cursive handwriting. His face lit up when he saw Peggy and he rushed out from behind the counter to hug her.

“Peg!” Steve exclaimed. “How nice of you to come visit!” Bucky thought Steve looked like a kid on Christmas morning. “And Nat,” Steve continued, going to shake her hand. “It’s always a pleasure to see you.” He turned toward Maria this time and said, “Dude. What’s up?” and gave her a high-five. Finally, Steve turned his blue eyes to look at Bucky. “And you must be Bucky.” Steve extended his hand for Bucky to shake. Bucky shook his hand, well, more like Steve shook his. Steve certainly had a firm handshake. Bucky felt like his hand was going to be crushed. “I’ve heard so many good things about you.” Steve gave him a sincere smile. Bucky felt himself blushing. He had never met someone as positive as Steve. The good vibes just rolled off of this man in waves.

“Yeah, good to- nice to meet you too,” Bucky replied. Steve let go of Bucky’s hand and walked back behind the register.

“So,” Steve said, clapping his hands together. “What can I get for you guys?” The three girls and Bucky placed their orders. Steve smiled and said, “Coming right out. Sit anywhere, guys.”

Maria led the group to a table by the window and they all sat down. Everyone was staring at Bucky. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably until Natasha broke the silence.

“So,” she began. “What do you think?”

Bucky bit his lip. “I, yeah, I could live with him,” Bucky stated before adding a more concerned, “What does he think of me?”

Peggy sighed and replied, “He loves you.”

Bucky’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? How do you know?”

“I just do,” Peggy said with a tone of finality.

“Totally,” Maria agreed. “You should ask him about it when he brings out our order.”

Bucky looked at Natasha to see what she was thinking. She nodded at him and said, “Go for it.”

After a few more tense minutes for Bucky, Steve came out, carrying a green tray full of their coffee and breakfast.

“Here you go,” he said as he passed out everyone’s food. Then Steve started passing out drinks, saying, “Black coffee for Nat,” he smiled at her as he set down her mug. “Hot tea for Peg,” Peggy thanked him as she took the cup from him. “Chocolate milk for Maria,” he continued. “And a white chocolate mocha espresso for Buck.” He sat the final mug down in front of Bucky. “I gave you extra whipped cream. Don’t tell anybody,” Steve said as he put his index finger to his lips and winked. He stood up straight and said, “Will we be needing anything else today ladies and gentleman?”

Natasha kicked Bucky under the table.

“Fuck!” Bucky exclaimed. Steve raised his eyebrow at him. “Sorry,” Bucky mumbled. “Leg cramp.”

Steve’s face relaxed back into a smile. “Well, if you need anything, I’ll be-"  
“Actually,” Bucky interrupted him. “I do need something. Um, I heard you were looking for a roommate? Are you still? Looking for a roommate, that is? Because I’m looking for a place to live. Where I was living didn’t… work out.”

“Yes, I am!” Steve said excitedly, clapping his hands together. “How soon can you move in?”

Bucky looked at Natasha and replied, “Today? I think today. Is that too soon?”

“Oh, no, that’s perfect. I get off at 12:00. I can be home by 1:00. If it’s not inconvenient for you, you can come by any time after that. Rent and utilities combined will be about $400 a month for each of us. The apartment is a loft with an extra bedroom. I really hope you can move in,” Steve said, smiling wider than ever.

“No, yeah, that’d be awesome. Thank you so much. I’ll see you after 1:00.”

After Steve walked away, Peggy turned to Bucky with a smirk on her face. “See?” She asked. “He loves you.”


	2. Steve and Bucky Don't Go to IKEA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you kidding?” Steve asked. “I love shopping. Especially when I’m not the one buying anything. We should go to Bed Bath & Beyond. Bed is in the name, they’ve got to have something for you to sleep on.”  
> “You’re right,” Bucky agreed. “If not, that’s just bad advertising.” That made Steve giggle which in turn made Bucky blush. He decided he liked making Steve laugh.

* * *

 

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Natasha asked Bucky, looking up at the apartment from her car parked in the street.

“Actually, you know what? I’m not,” Bucky admitted. “Can you go and make sure Drew isn’t in there? Here, take my keys,” Bucky said as he tossed his keys to Nat. She caught them as Bucky added, “And if he is in there, can you please kill him?”

Natasha grinned and replied, “If he’s not there, I’ll call you and we can move all of your stuff out. I hope you don’t have too much. My car is pretty small.”

“Don’t worry. It’s only, like, some clothes and books. Oh, also my gigantic stuffed animal collection.”

Natasha looked at him skeptically and asked, “Seriously?”

Bucky laughed and said, “No! Now can we get this started? Go, go on," He urged, practically pushing Nat out of her car.

Natasha flipped him off as she walked into his old apartment building. Bucky smiled and waited. He thought about Steve. Steve seemed like the perfect roommate. He was nice, charming, and not to mention good looking. Bucky hoped it worked out.

A few minutes later his phone rang. It was Natasha. Bucky picked up and said, “Did you have to kill him?”

“Unfortunately, no. He's not here and I didn’t get to,” She replied. “But I don’t know if we can fit all of these dildos in my car, Barnes,” Nat joked. “You have a crazy fake penis collection.”

Bucky cackled and joked back, “I love dick, what can I say?”

Bucky hung up the phone and walked upstairs. The elevator was always broke in this building and now wouldn’t be an exception, of course. This made moving him out a lot harder than it could have been. Luckily, Bucky really didn’t have that many things. He and Natasha only made about three trips each. Still, Bucky lived on the fourth floor. It wasn’t that easy.

Before their last trip down, Bucky left his key on the table by the door. He had no interest in keeping it or coming back here to see Drew ever again.

“Thanks again, Nat,” Bucky said. “You’ve done so much for me the last few days. I owe you.”

“Don’t sweat it. I was just helping one of my best friends out,” She bumped her hip into his as they walked down the last flight of stairs together. By the time they were done, Bucky and Natasha were both mildly sweaty and breathing heavier than normal.

“Now,” Nat began. “Time to move you into Steve’s house.”

“I hope the elevator in his building is working,” Bucky said, wiping a drop of sweat off of his brow.

“If it’s not, Steve has to help you this time,” Natasha said with a smile.

“Deal.”

 

Thankfully, Steve’s elevator was working. Steve also helped Nat and Bucky move his things in, so instead of it taking half of an hour, it took ten minutes to get all of Bucky’s boxes inside of Steve’s apartment.

“Thanks, Rogers,” Nat said. She turned to Bucky and added, “Sorry to jet so fast but I have to be at work at 3:00. Call me tomorrow? Let me know how you’re settling in?”

“Sure thing,” Bucky replied.

“Well, I must say, I am disappointed that you can’t stay, Natasha. I have lasagna in the oven, and before you ask, yes, I totally made it by myself,” Steve said.

“I believe you,” Nat said, one eyebrow raised. “If by ‘totally made it myself’ you mean ‘totally took it out of the box myself.’”

“At least he can do that,” Bucky interjected. “The last time I tried to use an oven, I ended up setting off the fire alarm, making the whole building evacuate.”

This made Steve throw his head back and laugh. “Well, remind me not to let you near the washing machine, then!”

Natasha had already started to walk toward the door as she said, “See you guys later. Don’t have too much fun.”

Bucky said, “Bye, Nat!” at the same time that Steve said, “See ya!”

After Nat had closed the door, Steve turned to Bucky. “So,” Steve said with a mischievous grin. “How about a grand tour?”

“Great,” Bucky said, feeling awkward now that Nat wasn’t here as his safety net. “That would be great.”

“Sweet!” Steve cheered, clapping Bucky on the shoulder and gently pushing him away from the pile of boxes by the door. “To your left, you will see the kitchen area, complete with a stove, oven, microwave, and sink,” Steve said in a robotic tour guide voice that made Bucky crack up.

Steve’s hand slid across Bucky’s back to wrap around his far shoulder. Bucky wasn’t uncomfortable with Steve’s friendly arm around him; it was actually nice. Steve stopped in front of a set of stairs and said, “This leads to the loft-bedroom-thing. This is where I sleep, unless you’d rather sleep here.”

“No, I wouldn’t want you to move for me. You can stay up there,” Bucky assured him.

“It wouldn’t be any trouble,” Steve said, like it really wouldn’t be. He led him back around the kitchen to a door. “This is the bathroom. It has a shower AND a bathtub. Pretty rare for an apartment.” Bucky nodded in agreement. That was pretty cool. Steve took his arm out from around Bucky’s shoulder and gestured with both hands toward another closed door, next to the bathroom. “This will be your bedroom,” Steve stated. He opened the door and Bucky saw that it was a small room with exposed brick on one wall and a window on the side opposite the door.

“So,” Steve said nervously. “What do you think?”

Bucky pretended to consider living here because, let’s face it, Bucky couldn’t think of anywhere that he’d rather live, but he thought it would be fun to let Steve hang for a few seconds. “I love it,”  Bucky finally said, a smile spreading across his face.

“Really?” Steve asked, sounding relieved. “That’s amazing! Oh, but, hey. Do you have any furniture?”

Bucky’s face fell at that. “Um, no, actually. Wow. I guess I didn’t think about that.”

“Well, do you have money? Because if so, I can go help you pick some out, and if not, well, I do have a double bed. I could share with you for a little while.”

Bucky was surprised by his bluntness. “Yeah, I do have money for once,” Bucky laughed. “Are you sure you want to come with me though? You don’t have to.”

“Are you kidding?” Steve asked. “I love shopping. Especially when I’m not the one buying anything. We should go to Bed Bath & Beyond. Bed is in the name, they’ve got to have something for you to sleep on.”

“You’re right,” Bucky agreed. “If not, that’s just bad advertising.” That made Steve giggle which in turn made Bucky blush. He decided he liked making Steve laugh.

“Come on,” Steve said, pulling Bucky by his sleeve toward the door. “There’s a store on Broadway. I’ll drive.”

They were almost out the door before Bucky remembered the lasagna Steve had mentioned. “Steve, wait!” Steve turned to him, looking shocked and confused by Bucky’s outburst. “Don’t you have something in the oven?” Bucky continued.

Steve let out a laugh, his eyes closing shut from the force of it. “You’re rubbing off on me. You’ve been here for ten minutes and already we’re trying to burn the building down.”

He felt more at home here than he ever did at Drew’s apartment. Bucky smiled. He knew he would fit in with Steve just fine.

 

Bucky and Steve walked to the parking spaces next to Steve’s building. Steve pressed the unlock button on his key fob and a little red Prius emitted a quick, “beep, beep!” Steve pressed the unlock button about six more times before he was satisfied.

As they got in the car, Steve said, “It’s good for the environment and freakin’ cute, too.”

“Sometimes I feel like the only person in New York without a car,” Bucky complained as he shut his door.

“Not true,” Steve countered with a smile, starting the engine. “You just seem to know the 2% of people who _do_ own a car.”

“Well, it’s convenient for me. I don’t have to drive but I don’t have to walk all of the time either. Speaking of that, here,” Bucky handed Steve a ten dollar bill. “Gas money. Thanks again for driving me. It would suck to have to carry a bed on my back all of the way to your apartment.”

Steve looked at Bucky like he had just insulted his mother and said, “I will not accept your money! You put that back in your wallet. This is going to be fun for me so don’t worry about it. Also, it’s _our_ apartment.”

 Steve’s last comment made Bucky’s cheeks flush. “Fine, our apartment," Bucky corrected. "But I still think you should take the gas money. Café 27 can’t pay you _that_ well.” Bucky made a mental note to shove the money into some of Steve’s pants when they got back to his- their apartment.

 “You’re right, it doesn’t,” Steve laughed and asked, “Where do you work?”

“Rogue Music,” Bucky replied. “On 30th. Basically, I get to play expensive guitars all day. I also sell them to people but that’s not the fun part.”

Steve’s eyebrows shot up. “You can play guitar?” He asked excitedly.

“Yep,” Bucky replied. “Also drums. And piano. And a little harmonica.” Bucky said the last part with a smile. Harmonica was a ridiculous instrument.

“That’s so rad!” Steve enthused. “You have to play for me sometime.”

“Okay,” Bucky replied, smiling at Steve’s interest in him. “I will.”

 

‘Well,” Steve said as they walked toward the entrance to Bed Bath & Beyond. “It’s not IKEA, but I think it will do.”  
“That’s okay,” Bucky said. “I can’t afford IKEA anyway.”

The two men walked into the store and were immediately greeted by an employee. “Hi, how are you?” The woman asked, and without leaving any time for them to answer she continued, “How can I help you? Oh, are you setting up a wedding registry?”

A wedding registry? Who was getting married? Bucky blinked a few times and opened his mouth to speak but Steve beat him to it.

“No, we’re just looking around right now, thanks, though,” Steve smiled and began to walk away from the entrance. Bucky followed him.

“Okay,” The woman called after them. “Just let me know if you need anything!”

After they were a fair distance away from her, Bucky asked, “What was she talking about? Who’s getting married?”

Steve laughed and answered, “Seriously, you didn’t know? She was talking about us, Buck. Can I call you Buck?”

Bucky’s mouth popped open into an ‘O’ shape when he processed Steve’s words. He sighed dramatically and said, “I guess you can do whatever you want since we’re getting married.”

This made Steve laugh so hard that he had to stop walking, which made Bucky chuckle a little too.

“Let’s find you a bed and stuff,” Steve said when he finally stood up, wiping tears out of his eyes.

“Okay, hubby,” Bucky replied.

 

By the time they checked out, Bucky was down ~~all of his savings~~ $600, but he had a bed, mattress, and some sheets and pillows. They had to wheel it out of the store on a weird cart that looked more like the flatbed of a truck than a cart.

“Steve, I don’t think we thought this through. How are we supposed to get this in your car?” Bucky said as they approached the Prius, which looked smaller than it did earlier now that they had to fit so much in it.

“Lucky for you,” Steve replied. “Steve Rogers is always prepared. I have some bungee cords in the back and we can put the mattress on the roof with those. It’s only a twin mattress so that shouldn’t be so hard. As for the bed, it’s in a box. We can just put it in the backseat.”

Bucky didn’t seem so sure, but if Steve thought they could do it, Bucky would try.

 

Turns out, Steve was right. Bucky didn’t doubt him, it just seemed hard to do. A Prius was not exactly a pickup truck. The hardest part was getting the mattress out of the elevator.

“Okay, turn it to your right, no left, oh, I don’t know,” Steve whined. “We’re going to be stuck in this elevator forever and we’re going to have to eat this mattress to stay alive.”

Bucky wanted to laugh but he was afraid that Steve’s prediction would come true. “We better not,” Bucky grunted as he tried to shove the mattress out of the door, which kept trying to close on them. “This thing was expensive.”

After a few more shoves from Bucky and Steve, the mattress came toppling out of the elevator, with Steve on top of it and Bucky wedged partly beneath it.

“A little help here?” Bucky groaned from under the weight of Steve on the mattress.

“Oh, my god!” Steve exclaimed as he jumped up from where he fell. “Are you okay?”

Bucky slithered out from under the mattress and sat up next to it, taking deep breaths now that he had regained the use of his lungs. Steve stuck his hand out for Bucky to grab on to. Bucky grabbed his hand and yelped as Steve hoisted him up off of the ground. Steve was really strong and if Bucky couldn’t tell that from just looking at him, he would have known when Steve nearly pulled his arm out of his socket helping him up.

“Jesus,” Bucky said. “You must work out a whole hell of a lot. You almost ripped me in half.”

Steve gave Bucky a concerned look and said, “I’m sorry, are you okay?”

Bucky shrugged and wiggled his hand back and forth to say ‘more or less’.

Steve smiled and explained, “Yeah, I try to hit the gym every day. I was puny as a kid, always sick. But I grew a foot and gained some weight and here I am, ripping people in half.”

Bucky smiled and met Steve’s gaze, but started to blush and looked away. Bucky hated having ~~translucent~~ pale skin. Everyone knew every time he felt any emotion, ever.

“Well, should we get this monster inside?” Bucky asked, gesturing toward the mattress lying in the hallway.

“We should,” Steve began. “But I don’t really want to. Do I have to?”

Bucky looked at Steve incredulously and whined, “You’re the muscle-man here. You could probably carry this by yourself. You have to help me.”

“Alright, alright,” Steve relented, laughing.

 

By the time they had added the box, mattress, and bags from Bed Bath & Beyond to the already large pile of boxes by their door, Steve and Bucky were tired from a long day of moving Bucky in.

“Thank you so much, Steve, seriously,” Bucky said between sips from a glass of water that Steve had handed him.

“You’re welcome. I had a lot of fun,” Steve replied before chugging his own glass of water. “Are you hungry? We never got to eat that kickass lasagna that I made.”

“Oh, right,” Bucky sneered. “Your famous recipe.”

Steve playfully punched Bucky in the arm and said, “You know it.”

 

“So,” Steve asked Bucky as he pulled the re-heated lasagna out of the oven. “Do you go to school?”

“Sadly, no,” Bucky replied, sitting at the small table in their kitchen. “I wanted to go straight into the workforce, or at least that’s what I tell my family. Truth be told, school just isn’t for me.”

Steve nodded in understanding. “I can dig that.”

“What about you? Do you go to school?” Bucky asked.

“I’m in the New York Arts Program, on a scholarship of course. Shit’s expensive,” Steve explained as he placed a plate of lasagna in front of Bucky.

“No way. That’s awesome, dude. So, you draw? Paint? What do you do?”

Steve chewed a bite of lasagna before answering Bucky. “I cook, obviously.”

This made Bucky giggle like a child.

“No, seriously!” Steve continued.

“I’m sorry, Bobby Flay. How could I forget you were such a prestigious chef?”

Steve grinned and confessed, “I do a little of everything. But mostly, I draw. If I’m not at work, at the gym, or at school, I’m probably drawing. I have a disgusting amount of sketchbooks lying around.”

Bucky hadn’t really noticed before, but now that he was looking, he could see a sketchbook on pretty much every flat surface throughout the apartment.

“That’s awesome,” Bucky confided. “That you can- you’re awesome.”

“Thanks,” Steve replied. “You’re pretty awesome too. What do you say that we do dishes, I wash, you dry?”

“Absolutely,” Bucky said, pushing away from the table. “Thanks for the dinner, Bobby Flay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These first few chapters are just setting up their relationship. It's all best friend domestic fluff awesomeness from here.


	3. The One Where Bucky and Steve Assemble Furniture or Steve Rogers, Actual Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “We should come up with a secret plan," Natasha suggested. "How about ‘Operation: Find Bucky and Steve boyfriends’.”  
> “Ooh, I have a better one,” Peggy said. “’Operation: Make Bucky and Steve each other’s boyfriends’.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Food mention and some swearing.

* * *

 

Before Bucky could go to sleep that night, he had to assemble the bed that he bought, which was a lot harder than the picture of the smiling woman putting it together on the box made it seem.

Bucky was squatting next to the pieces to his bed, looking at the instructions. “I’m supposed to attach a brackety thing to the side things using a bunch of these little whim guys. I have no brackety thing, I see no whim guys whatsoever and,” Bucky said, looking down at his feet. “I cannot feel my legs.”

When Bucky looked over at Steve, he could see that he had some resemblance of the headboard assembled, but he had pieces left over.

“I’m thinking we got a headboard here!” Steve said proudly. “It’s a beautiful thing.”

Bucky walked over and picked up a spare part off of the ground. “What’s this?” He asked.

“I would have to say that is an L-shaped bracket,” Steve replied.

“Which goes where?” Bucky asked.

“I have… no idea,” Steve said, rubbing his hand across his chin.

Bucky sighed and walked back over to his portion of the bed to see what he could do to put it together. When Bucky wasn’t looking, Steve threw the extra piece in the potted aloe plant nearby.

“Done with the headboard!” Steve exclaimed.

Bucky groaned and said, “Must be nice. Come help me, I have no idea what I’m doing.”

Together, Bucky and Steve built Bucky’s bed. There were spare parts lying around afterward and if you sat on it wrong it swayed a little, but it was a bed all the same.

“Thanks,” Bucky said, handing Steve the only drink that he could find in the fridge, which was a bottle of Svelte, some type of protein shake. “And by the way, we have to go shopping tomorrow. This stuff is weird. It doesn’t even have any milk in it.”

“It helps me bulk up,” Steve explained, flexing his arms. “Gotta stay fit for all of the hot people that might see me.”

Bucky was momentarily distracted by Steve’s beautiful arms so he didn’t get time to reply before Steve asked, “Why did we assemble this in the living room?” Steve waved his hand in front of Bucky’s face. “Hello? Earth to Buck? We have to move this into your bedroom.”

Bucky blinked a few times and said, “Right, okay. You get the headboard and I’ll get this end.”

“I don’t know, are you gonna zone out on me again, Space Cadet?” Steve asked as he lifted his end.

“No promises,” Bucky replied with a smile.

 

By the third day of Bucky living with Steve, Bucky felt like they had known each other for years. It was five weeks before Thanksgiving and winter was setting in on New York city, so Bucky and Steve were curled up on opposite ends of the couch, sharing Bucky’s big fuzzy blanket.

Steve slid his cold feet under Bucky’s thigh. Bucky jumped and exclaimed, “What the hell! Why are your feet so cold? Do I need to let you borrow some socks?”

Steve squinted at the sketchbook he had propped on one knee and replied, “No, your butt is warming them just fine.”

“But now my butt is cold,” Bucky whined. He stuck out his bottom lip for dramatic effect.

Steve put his pencil behind his ear and placed his sketchbook down before saying, “Trust me. Buck, your booty is hot.”

“Whatever,” Bucky said. “Flirting with me won’t make me any less angry that you put your cold-ass feet under me to warm them. Meanwhile, my feet are still cold.”

Steve gave Bucky a wicked smile and said, “Put on some socks.”

Bucky threw a pillow at Steve and said, “I hate you.”

Steve caught the pillow and put it behind his head. “Do not.”

“I do too! And give me my pillow back,” Bucky said, lurching forward to try to reclaim the pillow he threw at Steve. Steve ducked but Bucky’s momentum kept going and he fell off of the couch, which made Steve erupt into laughter, eyes closed and hands trying to grab on to something for support. Even from his disgruntled position on the floor, Bucky could still appreciate how Steve laughed with his whole body, but he thought it would be even funnier if Steve was laughing from the floor. Bucky grabbed onto Steve’s ankle and pulled him down. He collided with the hardwood with a loud bang. This time, it was Bucky who was laughing so hard that tears were rolling down his cheeks.

“Alright, tough guy. Let’s see how you like it when,” Steve positioned himself slightly over Bucky. “I TICKLE YOU.”

Bucky stopped laughing immediately and said, “No, don’t you-“ before he was cut off by the giggles escaping his lips as Steve tickled him. Bucky was wiggling around on the floor trying to escape Steve’s grip when they were interrupted by an angry pounding on their door.

Steve raised his eyebrow and asked, “Expecting company?”

Bucky took this opportunity to scooch away from Steve’s reach. He shook his head and replied, “Not unless that’s the pizza delivery guy that failed to show up last year.”

Steve cocked his head to the side like a confused chihuahua. Bucky thought it was cute.

“Long story,” Bucky explained, waving his hand. The knocking came again, louder this time. “Are you gonna answer it or not?”

Steve pushed up off of the ground, muttering under his breath, “Why should I have to answer it? It’s half your apartment, too.”

“I heard that, Rogers!” Bucky called from his place on the floor.

Steve looked through the peephole and saw a short old man who looked very angry standing on their welcome mat. He almost didn’t want to open the door, but he did anyway, saying, “How can I help you, Mister…?”

“Pierce,” The old man huffed. “And you can help me by keeping it down. You and your,”

Pierce looked around Steve’s outstretched arm and saw Bucky building a pillow fort on the floor. Bucky grinned and waved.

“Boyfriend,” the man spat out. “Have been hampering me from taking my afternoon nap. What in God’s name are you doing that requires making that much noise?!”

Steve opened his mouth to apologize but Pierce cut him off, saying, “No, I don’t want to know. In the future, keep it down or I _will_ call the authorities on you two.”

Steve stifled a smile and apologized, “I’m sorry Mr. Pierce. We’ll be sure to have sex quieter next time.” He added the last part purely to agitate the old man.

Pierce’s face bypassed red and went straight to purple and he said, “Well, I never-! Just keep it down!” The man turned abruptly and stormed away. Steve shut the door and tried to quiet his laughter for as long as possible before it burst from his chest in loud waves. Mr. Pierce could probably hear him.

Bucky looked at Steve, wide-eyed, and asked, “What on earth did you say to him? His face was the color of your car!”

Steve tried to explain between giggles, “He- he thought we w-were, you know, gettin’ it on, so I told him that- that we would be quieter next time we had sex. He was so pissed!” Steve barely got the last word out before he started laughing again.

Bucky’s cheeks turned pink as he started to let out little bubbles of laughter himself. “Fuck conservative dickheads like that. Let’s go make out in front of his apartment. Or superglue a dildo to his door.”

“I like the way you think,” Steve said, his smile growing so that it caused his eyes to crinkle up.

Bucky didn’t know whether he was talking about the dildo or the kissing. “Come here,” Bucky said as he pulled Steve by his sleeve. “Help me build this fort. I wanna watch movies in it.”

“Ooh, okay!” Steve said excitedly. “But I get to pick the movie. And I pick… Star Wars,” he decided with a devilish smile.

“Uh, no way. Have you seen The Notebook?” Bucky asked.

“No, is it like the Burn Book from Mean Girls?”

Bucky laughed and said, “What? No! It’s a romantic movie. Everyone has to see it or they have no soul and their life is incomplete.”

“Okay, I’ll watch it,” Steve agreed. “How many times have you seen it?”

“Uh, you know what? That’s- that’s irrelevant. Let’s just build this fort.”

 

Two hours later, Bucky was sobbing into Steve’s shoulder. Steve was stroking his hair and handing him tissues when he needed them.

Steve wiped the tears out of his own eyes and said, “That movie was awesome. And so sad.”

Bucky sniffed back his snot and tears and leaned up off of Steve. “I’m sorry I’m such a mess,” he said. “I must have needed to cry or something.”

Steve rubbed his hand across Bucky’s back in circles and said, “Yeah, you must have. Is there anything you want to talk about? That’s a pretty large amount of tears for a movie that you’ve seen so many times.”

If Bucky was a cat, he would have been purring, despite the tears still rolling quietly down his cheeks. “I had to move in to a new place because I caught my boyfriend cheating on me and I have zero tolerance for people treating me like shit. But I’m okay. He doesn’t mean anything to me if he’s going to treat me that way. I have great friends and I don’t need anyone like that. I haven’t talked to him since and I don’t plan to.”

Steve sat up straight and turned to face Bucky. They were both sitting criss-cross-applesauce and their knees were touching. “I’m so sorry,” he said genuinely. “You know, I’ve had a few girlfriends like that.”

For some reason, Bucky’s heart dropped. Why did he care if Steve liked guys or not? Regardless, the tears came a little quicker now and it got harder to breathe. He was crying like a child, and in front of his new roommate. Bucky hastily wiped his eyes and said, “I’m sorry. Look at me, I must look ridiculous. I’m going to go clean up.”

Bucky stood up but Steve grabbed him by his hands and gently pulled him back down into sitting position. “It’s okay!” He urged Bucky. “We all have emotions and I’m sure you’ll feel better once you talk about them. I’ll always listen even if I don’t have any good advice for you. I’m no stranger in getting my heart broken by boys. I’m here for you, Buck.”

“Really?” Bucky said eagerly. _Boys?_ He thought. Steve looked slightly confused by Bucky’s happy tone. _Get it together, Barnes,_ he chided himself. “That sucks,” he amended, in a more somber tone. “At least we have each other?” Bucky said hopefully.

“That we do,” Steve said with a smile.

 

Bucky awoke to his phone ringing at 7:15 AM. The ringtone that played was Run the World (Girls) by Beyoncé. Bucky knew it was Natasha because it was Nat who picked that out for her ringtone.

Bucky slid his finger across the touchscreen to answer her and asked, “Why are you bothering me so early?”

“You never called to tell me how you were settling in. I don’t like being ignored.”

Bucky realized that she was right and apologized. “Oh, yeah. Sorry. We had to try to assemble my bed on the first night and then yesterday I had to work and I’ve just been busy. I wasn’t ignoring you. Promise.”

“Hmm,” she hummed into the phone, considering whether or not to accept his apology. “You’re forgiven, I guess.”

Bucky let out a sigh of relief.

“But!” She added. “Only if we can hang out today. And by we, I mean us and you and Steve. Are you two working?”

Bucky wracked his brain to try to remember Steve’s schedule. Steve had told him yesterday, but Bucky couldn’t remember things like that very well anyway, no less in his groggy, sleep deprived state. “No, he doesn’t,” Bucky finally remembered. “I do, but not until five. We can have lunch together. But nowhere expensive, I just spent a shit ton of money on a bed.”

“Alright, La Bernardin it is, then,” Natasha said mischievously.

Bucky groaned and said, “I hope you’re kidding. I can’t afford one of the best seafood places in New York right now. I can barely afford McDonalds until I get my next paycheck.”

“Of course I am, don’t get your panties in a wad,” Natasha said.

Bucky flinched and replied, “Did you just say ‘panties’? I hate that word. It’s so gross-sounding. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.”

“Panties, panties, panties,” Natasha said. “And for your added discomfort, moist.”

“Gross!” Bucky exclaimed.

Natasha laughed and said, “I’ll swing by at 11 to pick you two up. See you then.” Bucky heard three beeps signaling that Natasha had ended the call. He sighed and set his phone down on the bed next to him before extending his arms fully and stretching the sleep out of his body. That was when Steve walked in.

“Wow, you’re still in bed? Daylight’s burning, Buck. I've already been on my morning run,” Steve said as he took a sip from his coffee and turned Bucky’s light on.

Bucky pulled his blanket printed with puppies over his head and mumbled, “Why is everyone up so goddamn early?”

Steve laughed and answered, “Because we don’t go to bed at 4 AM.”

“The night is much cooler than the day. You can see the stars. It’s quieter. Not really in the city but in general the night is just better,” Bucky explained from under his blanket.

“Well, when you decide to get out of bed, I made coffee. You’re welcome,” Steve said with a smirk. Bucky heard Steve walking away and sighed.

Bucky peeped one eye out of his blanket and saw that Steve turned his light off. Thank God, this would make waking up so much easier.

He sat up and yawned. Bucky really should stop staying up so late- early. He wiggled one of his feet to get the blood circulating and stop the feeling of pins and needles from spreading up his leg. Once he could kind of feel his foot again, Bucky picked up a Smiths shirt off of his floor and sniffed it. It smelled acceptable so Bucky put it on and began the search for pants. In the corner by his window, Bucky spotted a pair of jeans in a pile of dirty clothes. Bucky picked them up and was pleasantly surprised when he saw that a belt was still in the belt loops. He slid them on and buckled the belt before walking out into the living room.

“Finally!” Steve exclaimed when he saw Bucky. “I thought I was going to have to dump cold water on you.”

“Boy, am I thankful that you didn’t do that,” Bucky said, voice still thick with sleep.

“You look adorable,” Steve said. “Your hair is a mess and your eyes are all squinty. And your clothes are very wrinkled. You look like a trash angel.”

If Bucky was more awake he probably would have blushed. Instead, he asked, “Trash angel? Is that a good thing?”

“Everything about you is good,” Steve assured him seriously. “What are the plans for today?”

Bucky waited until he had poured himself a cup of coffee and taken a sip to reply. “Natasha says she’s coming to pick us up at 11 for lunch. I wouldn’t argue with her,” Bucky warned.

“Of course not,” Steve solemnly agreed. “I value my life.”

 

Bucky and Steve were standing outside of their building at 10:45 to wait on Natasha. Steve was bundled up in his coat and scarf while Bucky was just wearing his leather jacket and a beanie.

“Aren’t you cold?” Steve asked.

“Punk never stops, Steve. Gotta keep up. Besides, it makes my metabolism work harder to keep my body warm. Maybe I’ll lose some weight.”

“You don’t need to,” Steve said seriously. “You look amazing. Although, that’s entirely up to you and it’s your choice. I don’t want to sound like I’m policing your body.”

Bucky laughed and said, “I admire how open minded and unbiased you are at literally all times. Maybe one day I’ll be half as nice as you.”

 

At 10:52, Natasha pulled up to their sidewalk. She rolled down her passenger side window and said, leaning around Peggy in the passenger seat, “I am so glad you two were already down here. I hate to be kept waiting. That was awesome of you guys.”

“Well, maybe if you didn’t show up everywhere so early you wouldn’t be kept waiting,” Bucky suggested.

“Time isn’t real, Bucky,” Natasha deadpanned. Bucky felt like she was mostly serious.

“Where are we going?” Steve asked as he climbed into the backseat after Bucky. “Also, where’s Maria?”

“We’re going to this cool Thai place next to the park. It’s a hole in the wall. Pretty inexpensive,” Peggy explained. Bucky let out a sigh of relief.

“And Maria is at work,” Natasha added. “They called her in last second. Some sort of technology errors, I don’t know. She’s the only one who knows how any of the software works at that company.”

Maria was a whiz with software and technology in general. She could program a Nintendo DS to do her laundry. Bucky was pretty sure she already had. She had a job at the Empire State Development office, working for the New York government, fixing their software, explaining to middle aged office workers why internet explorer was the bane of this earth. Maria was the smartest person Bucky knew, tied for first place with Peggy and Natasha. Girls really did run the world.

 

When they got to the restaurant, they were seated at a booth in a dark corner that seemed pretty suspicious to Bucky. Natasha sat next to Peggy which meant that Bucky had to sit next to Steve. He didn’t mind.

“This is perfect for discussing secret plans,” Natasha commented about where they were sitting. “We should come up with a secret plan. How about ‘Operation: Find Bucky and Steve boyfriends’.”

“Ooh, I have a better one,” Peggy said. “’Operation: Make Bucky and Steve _each other’s_ boyfriends’.”

Bucky choked on the water that he was sipping. He was trying to ignore all thoughts of Steve that leaned in that direction simply because he lived with the guy. He didn’t want to make it awkward. Bucky had to admit that there were times that he wished he could jump Steve’s bones. Like how last night when Steve had just gotten out of the shower and walked around with a towel wrapped around his waist and his hair was all messy and he was all sweaty and steamy and-

Bucky really had to stop thinking about Steve like that.

Steve patted Bucky on his back and said, “Don’t die, dude. I’m not sure that we can sue the restaurant if you die from drinking water the wrong way.”

How was Steve totally unperturbed by Nat and Peggy’s comments about them? Maybe Steve thought of Bucky so platonically that there was no chance in hell he’d ever date him, and therefore he just took it at face value- as a joke. That thought was depressing.

“Fuck you, I’ve been drinking water for 22 years and I think I know how to do it, thank you very much,” Bucky joked.

Steve shot his hands up defensively and replied, “I’m just sayin’”

It was then that the waitress came over to their table and asked, “Are you guys ready to order?”

“Yes, I think we are, thank you,” Natasha replied with a polite smile. “I’ll have the Spicy Basil Chicken. Make it extra spicy, please,” Natasha ordered as she folded up her menu and set it at the edge of the table.

“I’ll have the Pahd Thai,” Peggy said, placing her menu on top of Nat’s.

“Hmm,” Bucky said. “I think I’ll have the Green Curry.”

“Okay, and for you?” The waitress said, smiling at Steve.

“I want the Vegan Mixed Vegetables &  Tofu, if you could, thanks so much,” Steve replied, smiling back at her as he handed both his and Bucky’s menu to their waitress.

“Alright, I’ll have that right out!” The waitress said cheerily. She walked away and left Bucky wide-eyed and open-mouthed staring at Steve.

“You’re vegan, too?!” Bucky asked incredulously.

“Yep!” Steve replied. “I have been for- what day is it?”

“November 10th,” Natasha supplied.  
“Thanks. So, for a year, four months and,” Steve counted a number on his fingers and finished, “Seven days.”

"What about that lasagna you 'cooked'?" Bucky asked, complete with air quotes when he said 'cooked'.

"Oh, that was really expensive. It had very fake vegan cheese and tofu that tasted like meat in it. I didn't want to freak you out on the first day with my weird food," Steve explained. "I guess I succeeded because you couldn't tell the difference."

Bucky ran his hands through his hair leaned back into the booth. “You really are perfect aren’t you?” Bucky asked, defeated.

Steve’s eye twinkled as he said, “Nobody’s perfect, but if I had to decide, I’d say you’re a close second to it.”

“Oh, get a room!” Peggy exclaimed. This made Natasha laugh so hard she snorted.

“Okay,” Steve replied confidently. “Maybe we will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are going to start heating up (getting sappier) between Bucky and Steve!


	4. Steve's POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve falls off of a treadmill thinking about Bucky Barnes' sweet ass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Food mention, swearing.

* * *

 

Steve didn’t have classes on Wednesdays and it was really awesome because he and Bucky tried to get that day off of work so they could spend it together. At least, until one of them couldn’t get the day off. This week, Bucky had to work until close because they had some fancy guitar event going on.

When Steve woke up that Wednesday, he realized that Bucky had already left for work. The apartment was quiet with a surprising lack of video game sound effects or the cheesy dialogue of one of the Hallmark movies Bucky always seemed to be watching. Bucky may have a scary punk exterior, but leather jackets and studs couldn’t hide the fact that he was actually a sap for love and happy endings. Steve thought it was sweet.

He climbed down from the loft where his bedroom was and walked into the kitchen. He had every intention of making a pot of coffee and drinking all of it. Instead, he was interrupted by a scrap of paper taped to the coffee maker. He picked it up and read it.

Steve felt his heart swell in his chest a little when he read that Bucky had made him pancakes. Steve placed the note on the counter and started up the coffee pot. He walked over to the fridge and pulled on the handle. When he moved the milk aside, sure enough, there was a stack of chocolate chip pancakes wrapped in plastic wrap. Steve never told Bucky where his vegan chocolate chips were. Bucky must have had to search forever to find the cacao nibs that he kept on the top shelf. Was Bucky even tall enough to reach them? Steve smiled and took them out. They were ugly and misshapen, but Bucky made them, so Steve loved them anyway.

Steve sat down at the table with his hot coffee and reheated pancakes and took his phone out. The time on his lockscreen read 11:47 AM. Bucky had been at work for almost three hours now. Steve could probably make it until 8. Maybe.

Steve washed the dishes (which was much less fun without his trusty drying partner) and put them in the cabinet. He sulked over to the couch, coffee mug and sketchbook in hand, and sat down with a big sigh. Steve thought about how they had planned to go to the park and pet as many dogs as possible today. Bucky loved dogs. Every time he saw one, he gasped and said, “That is the cutest dog I have ever seen!” The thought of Bucky made Steve smile.

Steve took a big chug of his coffee before he set it down on the table beside him and picked up his blue pencil, which wasn’t his favorite, but he didn’t feel like looking for one of his yellow ones.

He flipped the sketchbook around a few times, trying to get it at the right angle, before he decided to just leave it like he had it to begin with. Steve started sketching nothing in particular. Eventually, the lines started to take shape. One group of lines started to look like a torso, another like a head. Steve started taking back control of the lines now, penciling in a hard jaw line, broad shoulders that he knew well. Steve paid close attention to the small swoop of hair and the pouty lips that he was drawing. As he moved on to the eyes, he drew the first one perfectly, but he couldn’t seem to get the pencil to follow instructions on the second eye. He kept erasing and redrawing but eventually he ended up with a nearly torn page and decided to give up. He sighed and looked at his drawing.

“Great. A one-eyed Buck,” Steve said aloud. At least the rest of his drawing of Bucky looked good. Bucky was easy on the eyes and fun to draw. Truth be told, Steve probably could fill a sketchbook with the bits and pieces that he had been drawing of Bucky since he moved in. A set  of parted lips on a napkin, a pair of eyes, squinting from a smile, drawn on the back of a takeout menu. Steve loved drawing Bucky. He wondered if Bucky would find that creepy if he knew about it, or if he already knew.

Steve drew for another hour after that, just random things. The look on Mr. Pierce’s face when Steve talked to him the other week, the cat that lived in the alley beside their building, his favorite bench in central park, and… he was drawing Bucky again. Steve sighed and placed his unfinished picture of Bucky on the couch next to him and picked up the remote to their TV. He flipped through the channels and found Chopped on Food Network. Steve didn’t really like cooking, but for some reason, he liked watching other people cook. When the episode finished, Steve was bored again. He ended up watching the Food Network until he was so bored he couldn't stand it.

It was now 4:47 and Steve officially missed Bucky. He wandered over to the kitchen and mindlessly ate some grapes, shoving one after another into his mouth, as he tried to figure out what he was going to do until Bucky got home.  
Steve hadn’t been to the gym yet that day, so he decided to go ahead and go, kill some time. Steve climbed the ladder that led to his loft and walked over to his dresser. He opened the second drawer from the bottom and pulled out a clean t-shirt and pair of baseball shorts. Steve grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled it over his head before sliding the clean one on. He yanked off his pajama bottoms and jumped into his shorts, grabbed a pair of socks and tennis shoes, and climbed down from the loft. After Steve had his shoes on, he grabbed a water bottle and a towel and headed out the door. The gym was about two blocks from his house so he just walked. He figured it would help him stretch his legs before he started running.

Steve got to the gym and was greeted by the friendly trainers who knew him well. He did come in every day, after all. Steve put his towel and water bottle on a bench so he could stretch. After he finished, he got on a treadmill and started jogging at an average pace. As he was jogging, he couldn’t help but think about Bucky. Steve always loved running because it gave him time to sort through all of his thoughts and worries and clear his head. But now, all he could think about was Bucky’s shy smile.

Steve pressed a button on the treadmill and the speed increased dramatically. Maybe running faster would help. Steve kept pounding down on the running deck beneath him but he still couldn’t get Bucky out of his head. He thought about the soft wave of his brown hair when he gelled it, but also about how messy it was when Bucky first woke up or ran his hands through it one too many times. He thought about Bucky’s crooked smile and about how it started on the left side and eventually spread to his whole face. He thought about Bucky’s broad shoulders and his strong arms that were not bulky like his own. He thought about the tight shirts that Bucky wore and how they were wrinkled and dirty and how they fell over his hips and-

Steve slipped off of the treadmill with a yelp and landed on his hands and knees. The treadmill was still running when multiple trainers rushed over to see if he was hurt.

“Rogers! What the hell, are you okay?” A slim, older man demanded, sticking his hand out to help Steve up.

Steve had no idea how he ended up on the floor. “Yeah, I’m- I’m okay, thank you,” Steve reassured the man as well as the three other trainers huddled around him. He took his hand and hoisted himself up off of the floor.

“What happened?” A woman asked.

“To be honest, I have no idea. But I’m fine, honest, ma’am,” Steve replied with a sheepish smile and a shrug. Steve reached over and turned the whirring machine off. “I should probably call it a day, huh?”

Another trainer clutching a first aid kit tightly spoke up then, “As long as you think you’re completely fine, I would call it a day.”

“I do, thank you, though,” Steve said as he picked up his towel and water bottle.

 

Steve managed to get out of the gym without any further incidents. As he walked home, he reflected on what had happened. He had never thought about Bucky like.. _that_ before. Not because he didn’t like guys, because he certainly did. He just didn’t want to impose himself on Bucky. They were living together and Steve didn’t want Bucky to feel uncomfortable or unsafe. At least Steve knew that Bucky was into dudes too. Steve found himself slipping back into an old nervous habit of his when he started biting his nails a block from his house. That was when he decided to call Peggy.

Peggy didn’t pick up the first time he called. Steve didn’t want to bother her, but it was urgent. Peggy was the only one who knew him well enough to give him advice. They had been through a lot together. Peggy was there when Steve’s dad died. When it happened, Peggy and her family brought Steve and his mom dinner for a month and ate with them every night. Steve was only seventeen then. It made him feel like maybe things would be okay one day. Peggy had been his best friend since before he was even tall enough to ride a rollercoaster. She knew him before he got taller and bulked up, and for some reason she still liked him.

Steve counted to ten and called Peggy again. This time, she answered.

“Hey, what’s up?” A familiar voice asked through the phone.

Steve frantically replied, "Oh, thank God you answered. I’m having a crisis, Peg. Code Red.”

“Is it Bucky?” Peggy asked with a sigh.

“How did you know?” Steve asked incredulously.

“I know everything. The sooner you accept it, the easier your life will become. Anyway, who couldn’t know? You’re constantly making bedroom eyes at him. It’s either disgusting or charming. I can’t decide which.”

“I- you- I didn’t even realize I liked him until I fell off of a treadmill at the gym today fantasizing about his body! It was traumatic and. frankly, you are so not helping,” Steve whined, nearly running into a pole in the process.

Peggy laughed at him which just frustrated Steve more. “What’s so funny?” He asked.

“Oh, nothing. I’m just imagining you sliding off of an exercise machine, that’s all.”

“Peggy,” He whined even louder this time. “I need help. What do I do? Will he think I’m a creep for hitting on him when he lives with me? Is that taking advantage of him?”

“You worry too much,” Peggy said flippantly. “He obviously has a huge crush on you too. Just ask him out and stop acting like a middle school student.”

Steve’s whole face lit up and he asked, “He does?! How do you know? Did he say it? What did he say about me?”

“STEVE,” Peggy urged. “Just ask him out. Look, I’ve got to go now. Natasha wants me to help with the laundry. You’ll be okay!”

“Wait, no, how do I-“ Steve’s question was cut off by the beeping coming from his phone.

Peggy had hung up on him. But Bucky liked him.

Steve practically skipped the last few yards to his apartment. As he entered the building, he held the door and smiled at Mr. Pierce, who was coming out. Pierce just ‘hmmph-ed’ at him and walked out the door Steve wasn’t holding. Steve was way too happy to care.

He got on the elevator and hummed a song he heard spilling out of Bucky’s room last night all of the way to the 10th floor. Steve strode over to his door and unlocked it. He threw his gym stuff in a chair in the living area and climbed up to his loft. Steve checked the time on his phone. It was now 6:02. He had two more hours before he could see Bucky and, ultimately, ask him out. Steve had to make this perfect. He opened his wardrobe and looked for his favorite button up shirt. He found it and pulled it out. It was light blue with little white dinosaurs all over it. Next, he pulled out his dark blue skinny jeans. He laid both of them on his bed because he was way too sweaty to put them on now. He definitely had to shower first.

Steve washed his hair and his body with his special soap he got from Lush. He only used them on special occasions because they smelled awesome but were also expensive. This counted as a special occasion. Steve turned off the water and wrapped a towel around his waist. He brought a hand up to clean the fog off of the mirror so he could see to shave. He had just shaved his face yesterday, but he wanted to look perfect. After that, Steve turned on the blow-dryer and finished the job that air drying hadn’t.

Once Steve was all cleaned up, he went back up to his loft to get dressed. He slid on his jeans and socks but left his shirt off. Steve opened a closet on the far wall and pulled out an ironing board and an iron. He unfolded it and plugged the iron in, setting the shirt out while he waited for it to heat up. Steve ironed his shirt carefully before putting it on and buttoning every button except the top two. Steve slid into his red converse and tied the laces into a double knot. Steve picked his phone up off of his bedside table and checked the time. It was 6:57. Steve only had to wait one hour to see Bucky, but he didn’t want to wait here.

Steve remembered Bucky saying something about having to walk to work because he didn’t have a car. Steve had an idea. It was already dark outside and Steve didn’t want Bucky to have to walk in the cold all of the way home. Thanksgiving was in seven days and the cold weather season had certainly arrived. Steve mentally reprimanded himself for not waking up early to take Bucky to work today and grabbed his keys.

 

Steve shivered a little as he walked to his car. He got in, started the engine, and turned the heat on full blast. Steve wondered if Bucky had eaten all day and decided that he probably hadn’t because his boss was an evil workaholic, so he stopped by Bucky’s favorite restaurant, Chipotle, to get him a burrito. Steve parked and pulled his coat tighter around himself as he walked in. Steve ordered one veggie burrito, one chicken burrito, two bags of chips with salsa, and two waters. Steve thanked the employees and ran back to his car. It was almost 7:30 and Steve wanted to be there when Bucky got off work.

Ten minutes later, Steve arrived at Rogue Music. He pulled into one of the few parking spaces that were left and look at the brightly lit building. Bucky has been there since eight this morning. He was probably exhausted. Steve thought that he really shouldn’t bother him any more by asking him out…

Steve cut off his car and got out, leaving their dinner in the passenger seat. Steve walked through the dimly lit parking lot. When he finally got inside, he looked around. He saw a group of older guys in all black by what looked like a Misfits display, if the huge skull was any indication. The store was full of guitars and basses and at least one of pretty much every instrument you could think of. On the opposite end of the store, there was a glass display case holding six or seven guitars. Standing next to that display case was none other than Bucky. Steve smiled and began to run over before realizing what he was doing and composing himself. Steve ran his hand through his hair and straightened his shirt before calmly walking toward Bucky, pretending to show interest in a few guitars on the way there so he didn’t look too obvious.

Steve joined the small crowd of people around Bucky and listened to him talk about guitars. Steve didn’t quite understand any of it, but he didn’t care because he got to see Bucky so full of passion, talking about something he loved. Eventually, a voice came over the intercom saying, “Good evening. I’m sorry to say, but it is now 8:00. The store will close in ten minutes. Thank you.”

The crowd around Bucky dissipated and left just Steve, watching Bucky clean up. Bucky had his back turned to Steve until Steve cleared his throat and said, “Excuse me, sir,” with a small smile.

Bucky turned around, looking confused, until he realized that it was Steve and a huge grin spread across his face, starting on the left side. Steve’s stomach fluttered a little.

“Steve!” Bucky exclaimed, running over to hug him. Bucky backed away quickly and said, “Er, sorry, I guess that was a little too much.” Steve noticed a hint of pink creeping into his friend’s cheeks.

“No, it’s fine,” Steve replied.

The silence that followed was thick and uncomfortable until Bucky smiled and asked, “So, are you looking to buy or just annoy me?”

Steve laughed and replied, “I’m here purely for your entertainment.”

“Well, I get to leave as soon as I lock up this case, so if you don’t mind waiting around…” Bucky trailed off.

“Of course!” Steve said. “Just hurry up. I got you a burrito from Chipotle and it’s probably already cold.”

“Ugh, fuck yes, thank you, you’re the best,” Bucky moaned. This time, Steve’s cheeks turned pink.

“It was nothing, I guess,” Steve said, kicking his feet around aimlessly as he stared at his shoes.

“Okay, all done,” Bucky said cheerily. “Let’s go.”

“Aren’t you tired?” Steve asked as they walked toward the exit.

Bucky shrugged and replied, “A little but I’m okay. Plus, my boss paid me extra to work for so long. And I got like $20 in tips.”

Steve bumped his hip into Bucky’s as they walked through the front entrance and said, “Who knew selling guitars could be so lucrative?”

Bucky laughed and said, “Hey, I don’t have to be an amazing artist to make lots of money, okay? I can make lots of money while doing basically nothing.”

“I can see that,” Steve replied with a smile.

Bucky tried to stifle a yawn as they neared the car. Steve noticed the dark circles under his eyes when they walked by a streetlight.

“Hey, why don’t we just go home? We don’t have to do anything special,” Steve suggested.

“No, no, I’m fine,” Bucky insisted.

“You’re exhausted!” Steve combatted. “Plus, it’s freezing outside. Let’s just go home and watch a movie or something.”

Steve walked in front of Bucky so he could open the car door for him.

“You weren’t kidding! Thank you so much,” Bucky said genuinely as he picked up the bag of food that was in the passenger seat. “And it’s still warm!” He added.

“You’re welcome,” Steve replied as he opened his own door. Making Bucky happy warmed him from the inside and twisted his stomach into knots. It always had, but now Steve knew exactly why.

 

When they arrived at their apartment, they had both eaten their burritos and Bucky had eaten both of their bags of chips. Steve didn’t mind. Steve cut the car off and quickly ran around to open Bucky’s door before he could gather his things and open it himself.

“Well, well,” Bucky said, looking Steve up and down. “I guess chivalry isn’t dead.”

“Stick around me long enough and you’ll probably never open a door for yourself again,” Steve replied. “I happen to be a professional door opener.”

“Is that right?” Bucky asked with a laugh.

 

The ride up on the elevator was quiet. Not awkwardly so, but comfortable. Steve could tell that Bucky was trying not to fall asleep. It looked like there would be no movie watching tonight. Steve didn’t mind. He just really wanted Bucky to get in bed and get some rest. Steve watched Bucky hobble over to their door after the elevator opened.

“Excuse me,” Bucky said, staring at the door. “Where is my door opener?”

Steve laughed and caught up with Bucky, reaching his hand around him to unlock and open the door, saying, “I’m sorry I kept you waiting, your highness.”

“Damn straight,” Bucky replied, grinning ear to ear.

 

Steve set his keys on the table and shrugged his jacket off while Bucky trudged to his room, presumably to go to bed.

Steve flopped down on the couch and pressed the Netflix button on his remote. He sighed as he thought about how he wore his dinosaur button up for nothing. He was extremely glad that he brought Bucky home, though. He decided he would do that from now on.

Steve heard something behind him and turned to see Bucky walking out of his room in one of Steve’s hoodies and pajama pants. He looked absolutely adorable and it was all Steve could do not to kiss him right there.

“You like my hoodie?” Bucky asked groggily.

Steve smiled and said, “Weird, I think I have one just like it.”

“No way,” Bucky replied, sitting down on the couch close enough to Steve that their thighs were touching. “This is a one-of-a-kind original Bucky Barnes pieces of clothing.” Bucky yawned and made grabby hands at the remote.

“Oh, no,” Steve joked as he handed Bucky the remote. “Now we have to watch a chick flick.”

“You’re welcome,” Bucky replied.

Steve watched as Bucky picked from one of the many movies that had a display picture of a boy kissing a girl in the rain. Steve didn’t really like romance movies. He thought they were all kind of predictable. He preferred horror movies, but he didn’t mind watching a romance movie. Especially not if he got to sit this close to Bucky.

 

Ten minutes into the movie, Bucky yawned again.

“You really don’t have to stay up, you know,” Steve said, concerned.

“Nonsense. Sleep is for the weak,” Bucky replied as he situated himself on their couch. Steve felt Bucky shifting next to him for about two minutes before he heard a big sigh and felt Bucky’s head fall on his lap.

“This couch is so uncomfortable,” Bucky grumbled into Steve’s thigh.

Steve tried not to outwardly express how panicked he was. He had no idea what to do. _Calm down, Rogers_ , Steve urged himself.

Steve tentatively placed his fingers in Bucky’s hair and started playing with the curly brown locks.

Bucky sighed happily and said, “Feels nice. Keep doing that.”

Steve let out the breath he was holding and continued to play with Bucky’s hair. Bucky was actually in his lap right now and he was kind of freaking out.

Steve felt Bucky’s breathing slow down and deepen. Bucky was about to fall asleep.

“Hey, Buck?” Steve asked softly, still playing with Bucky’s hair. Steve’s heart was beating out of his chest and he was sure that Bucky could hear it. Hell, Mr. Pierce could probably hear it.

“Hmm?” Bucky hummed, half asleep.

“Will you,” Steve began, but his words caught in his throat halfway. Steve took a deep breath and asked, “Will you be my boyfriend?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More is coming! Also if you guys ever see a typo or grammatical error (although, I do throw a lot of grammar out of the window here so it's probably not too serious) let me know :) I know its annoying to read a fic with tons of errors in it so I edit mine carefully but just, you know, it's okay to tell me.


	5. Spooning is for Lovers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve is a big nerd who has a big nerd crush on Bucky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lines denote POV shifts!

* * *

 

Bucky had his head resting in Steve’s lap. He was also wearing Steve’s hoodie. He tried to assure himself that there were no feelings attached to what he was doing. He only wore Steve’s hoodie because every piece of clothing he owned was dirty, well, except his hoodie. But his hoodie was itchy! He had no choice but to steal Steve’s hoodie out of the washing machine right? And he only had his head in Steve’s lap because the couch was agonizingly uncomfortable, right? Bucky sure was bad at lying to himself.

Bucky tried to focus on the movie he had picked out. From what he could tell, the sad lady who just moved to a new town was falling madly in love with the local shopkeeper there. It was the typical romance movie plot. Bucky was just starting to get into the movie when he felt gentle hands in his hair. Bucky groaned inwardly because he wasn’t sure if he could stay calm if Steve was going to rub his head and play with his hair. Bucky took deep breaths to calm himself. He could handle Steve playing with his hair. While he was laying in Steve’s lap. Wearing Steve’s hoodie. It was almost like they were- no, Bucky wouldn’t get his hopes up like that. Steve was just a nice guy. He probably played with Peggy’s hair all of the time. In fact, he and Peggy probably had something between them. Steve’s face lit up like a Christmas tree whenever he saw her. He didn’t want to get in between that, did he?

Bucky was slipping closer to sleep with each breath when he heard a soft voice above him.

“Hey, Buck?” Steve asked. Steve sounded worried. Bucky didn’t want Steve to be worried.

“Hmm?” Bucky hummed in reply.

“Will you,” Steve began, but stopped halfway. Steve didn’t normally act like this. It was making Bucky really nervous.

“Will you be my boyfriend?” Steve got quieter with every word he spoke.

Bucky’s eyes shot open and his heart stopped. Suddenly there wasn’t enough oxygen in the room. What had Steve just asked him? He knew he was kind of dazed, but was he dreaming?

Bucky sat up slowly and turned toward Steve, asking, “What?”

Steve’s face blushed a bright crimson and he quickly said, “Nothing, just forget it. It was a dumb idea. Forget I ever said anything. You know, I’m going to turn in for the night, give you some space.” Steve began to stand up. Bucky’s arm shot up the grab him. Steve stopped, face still red as the silly little car he drove, not making eye contact with Bucky.

Bucky didn’t say anything for 36 seconds, not that Steve was counting.

“Do,” Bucky began, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He looked up to meet Steve’s gaze and continued, “Do you mean it?”

Steve cleared his throat and whispered, “Well, yeah.” His shoulders hunched in defeat.

Bucky started laughing.

Steve’s eyebrows shot up and he asked, “What’s so funny? You know I didn’t put myself out there for you to-“

“Steve, wait-,” Bucky said over him.

Steve didn’t stop talking. “Criticize me. You know, I thought I had a chance with you and you’re really going to throw it in my face like-“

“Steve-“

“That. I cannot believe this. I thought you were-“

“STEVE.” This time, Bucky raised his voice over Steve’s babbling.

“What?!” Steve asked angrily, hands on his hips.

Bucky stood up and looked Steve in the eyes, pulling Steve’s hands off of his hips and holding them. “Shut up.”

Bucky leaned in and placed a soft kiss on the taller boy’s lips and backed away. Steve was left with his mouth hanging open and a confused look on his face. Bucky almost laughed again at how cute Steve looked.

“But, you laughed?” Steve finally said.

“Yeah, I did, you big fucking nerd, because I have spent all of these weeks pining over you and trying not to creep you out because I have a massive thing for you, okay? It’s pretty ironic. I mean, whose hoodie am I wearing right now? Seriously? How could you not know that I liked you. I made you pancakes!” Bucky explained.

“I know!” Steve insisted. “That’s why I thought… You know what? Never mind. I am a big idiot and I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Bucky giggled. Bucky didn’t even care that he just giggled.

“You never answered me,” Steve said wryly.

Bucky raised his eyebrows and asked, “So the kiss wasn’t clear enough?”

Steve smiled and said, “I think the answer was lost in translation. Maybe you should try again.”

“In your dreams, Rogers!” Bucky said. “But at any rate, YES!”

“Okay, good,” Steve replied with a smile. “You were starting to worry me.”

 

* * *

 

 

After the movie finished, Bucky was asleep with his head resting in Steve’s lap. Steve watched the last thirty minutes by himself, but he didn’t feel alone. He could hear Bucky’s deep, even breaths and his occasional snore. Steve debated sleeping on the couch just like that, but Bucky was making his leg fall asleep.

Steve gently slid one hand behind Bucky’s back and his other hand underneath his knees. Carefully, Steve lifted Bucky off of the couch and tiptoed over to Bucky’s room. He nudged open the door with his foot and tried to navigate through Bucky’s clutter without a light. Nearly missing a pile of laundry, Steve finally made it to the side of Bucky’s bed. He tried to place Bucky down on the bed slowly, but Bucky was heavy. Bucky may have been short, but he was a beefcake. Steve chuckled as he thought that Bucky was the only kind of beefcake he would ever like.

Steve ended up jostling Bucky a little too much on the way down and Bucky’s deep blue eyes fluttered open.

“Shit, sorry,” Steve whispered. “I was trying to be gentle.”

“’S okay,” Bucky mumbled sleepily as Steve pulled one of  Bucky’s many blankets over him.

“Jesus, do you collect blankets? You have like seven on your bed alone,” Steve said.

“I really like blankets,” Bucky grumbled, pulling the blanket up around his shoulders and rolling over. Steve decided that this would be a good time to leave. Bucky looked like he was already falling back asleep.

As Steve turned to walk away, Bucky asked, “Where do you think you’re going?”

Steve turned back around to face Bucky, face contorted with confusion. “To my bed? It’s almost 2 AM and I have classes tomorrow, so…” Steve answered.

“Nuh uh,” Bucky said. “Come here and spoon me.”

Steve felt himself blush. He began to ramble, “Are you sure you’re okay with that? I don’t want to impose or take advantage of you and your bed is really small and-“

“Stevie,” Bucky interrupted as he scooched to one side of his small bed. “Get in this bed and cuddle me. I don’t care if the bed is small, the point of cuddling is to be close, so that works in our favor. Also, of course I want you to, you’re my boyfriend,” He explained with a sleepy smile, which disappeared off of his face when he added, “Unless you don’t want to.”

“Are you kidding?” Steve asked, practically running to slide under Bucky’s covers. “This is all I’ve wanted to do since I saw you.”

“Rule one: I’m always the little spoon,” Bucky explained.

Steve nestled in next to Bucky, wrapping his arm around his waist and sliding the other above his own head. The big spoon always had the most awkward arm placements, but Steve didn’t care.

“Well, you’re too small to be the big spoon, so…” Steve joked.

Bucky was too sleepy to get offended and take the bait. He just yawned and said, “That’s why I have you.”

Steve didn’t say anything else. He knew Bucky was tired and he was going to let him sleep.

It was so nice to be pressed up against Bucky, and, wow, he actually was a beefcake. Steve could feel the muscles in Bucky’s thighs pressed up against his own. Thick thighs save lives, Steve thought.

Steve appreciated that he and Bucky could just be close without having to fuck, which was a requirement for all of his past boyfriends. But Bucky was different, he never took advantage of how nice Steve was. He always payed rent, even when it meant he didn’t have money to do anything else that week. He respected Steve’s lifestyle and never once asked him why or criticized him for the way he was, even though Bucky led his life differently.

Bucky pushed back into Steve in his sleep and Steve sighed happily. He could live with this.

 

“Nooo, don’t go,” Bucky pouted. Bucky had already made Steve late because he kept pulling him back into bed and kissing him. Now, Steve had to get dressed in whatever Bucky had laying on his floor because he didn’t have time to go up to his loft and get his own clothes.

“Oh, man, please don’t do that, you’re going to make me want to drop out of school and stay in bed forever and then I’ll owe a whole lot of money to the state of New York,” Steve whined.

Bucky made grabby hands at Steve and stuck his lip out. Steve was slipping on Bucky’s Pink Floyd shirt he found underneath a chair and a pair of jeans that were laying on the end of his bed. The shirt smelled clean, at least. Actually, it smelled better than clean; it smelled like Bucky.

“I thought we would have a few more dates before you undressed in front of me,” Bucky flirted at Steve.  
“You’ve seen me in nothing but my hands covering my junk before when I forgot my towel. This must be anticlimactic,” Steve replied offhandedly. He was trying to figure out what he had to bring to class, which, hey, started in ten minutes.

“On the contrary,” Bucky said. “This is just as awesome as the towel incident.”  
Steve didn’t seem to hear him as he walked over to the bed and said, “Okay, I have got to go now.” Steve leaned down like he was going to kiss Bucky but then jerked back. “Is it okay if I kiss you now?” Steve asked.

“Of course?” Bucky replied.

Steve leaned down and met his lips to Bucky’s. He had to force himself to pull away. He explained, “Sorry, I just ask because consent is important and I never want to make you uncomfortable. Lord knows I’ve had people who should have asked me first. Anyway, Buck, I really have to go. I hope you have an amazing, fun-filled day and I’ll be home in- what time is it?”

“7:50,” Bucky replied.

“Four hours, then,” Steve said as he walked out of Bucky’s bedroom.

“Drive safe!” Bucky called after him.

“Always!” Steve answered from somewhere by the front door.

Bucky heard the door shut. He sighed and rolled into a more comfortable position on his side. He decided that he may as well sleep some more because he didn’t have to go to work today. He never got enough sleep, he was always playing a game of catch-up.

As Bucky’s eyes slipped shut, the last thing he thought about before he fell asleep was how Steve looked in his Pink Floyd shirt.

 

* * *

 

Steve drove through the crazy morning traffic and somehow managed to only be ten minutes late to class. In fact, he wasn’t even the last one to arrive to class that day. Steve was barely paying attention in his art history class. He felt so safe in Bucky’s shirt. The jeans were a little tight, but Steve was 100% certain that they made his ass look great. Maybe he should always wear Bucky’s jeans. He couldn’t stop thinking about how Bucky was his boyfriend. He kept tossing the word around in his brain. Boyfriend…

He really needed to tell Peggy.

He glanced up at his teacher, who was lecturing about romanticism, to make sure that he wouldn’t be spotted with his phone out. It wasn’t exactly against the rules, but it was disrespectful to the professor, so Steve never texted in class. Until now.

 

_ OMG, PEG, GUESS WHAT? _

** You asked Bucky out, finally. How did it go? **

_ It’s no fun to talk to someone who knows everything. >:( _

** Waaaaaaah. **

** But seriously, what did he say? **

_ I’m not telling. _

** Okay. **

_ Who am I kidding? HE SAID YES!! _

** THAT’S MY BOY. **

 

Steve’s reply was interrupted by his professor. “Rogers!”

Steve’s head shot up from his iPhone. “Yes, sir?” He asked timidly.

“I have been calling your name for an eternity! Will you please answer question 17 for the class?” He asked with a sigh.

Thankfully, he did his homework before he got distracted by Bucky last night. “The Macchiaioli were a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the nineteenth century,” Steve replied confidently.

“Thank God,” The teacher mumbled on his breath.

Steve tapped out a quick reply to Peggy before putting his phone away and actually paying attention.

 

_ ❤❤❤ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just italicized some heart emojis. Technology is amazing.


End file.
